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Farenthold lands job with port authority

Published by Rachel Willis on Wed, 05/16/2018 - 12:00am

Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Former Republican U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold has accepted a lucrative position lobbying for a port in his ex-Texas district — mere weeks after resigning in disgrace amid fallout from using public funds to settle a past sexual harassment complaint.

The Calhoun Port Authority announced Monday that Farenthold would promote its interests in Washington and assist “in resolving funding issues.”

“Blake has always been a strong supporter of the Calhoun Port Authority and is familiar with the issues facing the port,” it said in a statement. Port Director Charles R. Hausmann said Farenthold’s annual salary will be $160,000.

The port is located in the Gulf Coast community of Point Comfort, an area hit by Hurricane Harvey last summer.

A former Farenthold congressional staffer didn’t return messages seeking comment Monday, but the ex-congressman himself told radio station KKTX that he’d taken a job about a 90-minute drive from his home in Corpus Christi.

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The inclusion of a Craddock Avenue extension through environmentally sensitive land in a presentation on the city's Transportation Master Plan at Tuesday's city council meeting raised questions.

The potential extension, that would extend Craddock to Lime Kiln Road and Interstate 35 on a route above Sink Creek, is listed as a conservation corridor in the thoroughfare plan.

There currently are only two routes that connect traffic between Interstate 35 and areas west now – Wonder World Drive and through downtown. The Craddock Avenue extension would divert the traffic that is moving through downtown to other areas, but could present some potential environmental issues.

The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, or CAMPO, started a regional arterial study in the middle of last year and when it is finished, it could show potential alternatives to the Craddock extension that CAMPO would be interested in funding.

The council is set to vote on the Transportation Master Plan on June 5.

Yes, it would ease traffic downtown sooner.

No, it's an environmentally-sensitive area and the city should wait for CAMPO options.